


Beautiful

by TobiBooneTheSmallSpoone



Series: Nice Rhack You Got There [4]
Category: Borderlands (Video Games), Tales from the Borderlands - Fandom
Genre: Fluff, Fluffyfest, Insecurity, M/M, Pet Names
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-09
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-29 05:18:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13920207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TobiBooneTheSmallSpoone/pseuds/TobiBooneTheSmallSpoone
Summary: Jack is resistant to Rhys's choice of pet name for him.





	Beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> Been thinking a lot of fluffy thoughts for these two, not sure why.

Jack was typing away at a tablet on the couch in a pair of sweatpants and t-shirt that had 'Hail to the King' emblazoned across it when he suddenly stopped and frowned, turning slowly to quirk an eyebrow at Rhys who had been staring at him for some time now,

“You lose something over here, cupcake?”

Rhys blinked and shook his head, “No, I was just thinking.”

“Your eyes aren't undressing me so I can only imagine what kind of thinking this is, Rhys.” Jack leaned an arm across the back of the couch and gestured to Rhys, “What were you thinking about?”

“Well . . . you have a whole lot of nicknames and stuff for me and I was just sitting here trying to fit different ones to you and see how they sat.” Rhys shrugged.

“Oh?” Jack shifted to be facing Rhys and smiled, “Anything stick?”

“No.” Rhys shook his head.

Jack furrowed his brow, “Huh. I would have at least thought 'Paragon of all Men' would have made the top five.”

Rhys snorted, “I'm not going to call you that. I was thinking something I could shout during sex or whatever.”

Jack leaned forward then started to crawl toward Rhys on his hands and knees, smirking in his shit-eating, self-assured way that always made Rhys fidget and blush,

“You don't shout much during sex, Rhysie, except 'oh' and 'god' and 'Jack please let me come'.”

Rhys snorted as Jack stretched out with his chin on Rhys's stomach, his arms sliding underneath the smaller man, “ _Anyway_ I can't think of any.”

Jack's brow furrowed and he worked his jaw a bit, “Not one? Really?”

“Yeah.” Rhys blinked at Jack for a moment, “What?”

Jack sat up and shook his head, “Nothing, I'm gonna go shower.”

“Oh, okay, do you want company?” Rhys offered, scooting to the edge of the couch.

“Huh? Oh, you don't have to.” Jack shrugged and started to pad across the thick carpet to the bathroom.

Rhys rolled his eyes, “You could just say 'yes', you know.” He hurried after Jack and closed the door behind them, “Are you okay?”

Jack turned from getting the hot water going and nodded but Rhys could smell bullshit, “I'm fine, why?”

“Does it really bother you that I don't call you anything besides your name?” Rhys pressed as he kicked his jeans and boxers off. Next he detached his arm and pressed a protective rubber plug into the port at his temple.

“No.” Jack snorted and shrugged off his shirt then sweatpants, he stopped and stared at himself in the large mirror before mist covered it.

Rhys held his breath for a moment as Jack reached up for the latches on the mask then the CEO of Hyperion sighed, looking at Rhys,

“Stop watching me.”

“Sorry!” Rhys quickly turned around, he could hear Jack taking the mask off then ducking into the shower.

After a moment Rhys turned and ducked into the shower, Jack was facing the wall closest to the stream of hot water with his back toward Rhys. This was more routine then you'd think, Jack hated taking the mask off and hated it when Rhys looked at him without it on, it was a little disarming for Jack of all people to be so self-conscious even after they'd been together for months now but he was. The accountant sighed and took a cautious step toward Jack as the taller man lathered up a washcloth,

“Jack?”

“Hm?” Jack started to clean his chest off then stopped abruptly when Rhys put a hand on his shoulder-blades.

Rhys sighed, “I thought of one.”

Jack tried to shrug Rhys off and move farther away but Rhys followed him, “Cut it out.”

“Don't you want to hear what I came up with?” Rhys asked softly moving closer until he could press his cheek against Jack's back under the stream of hot water.

Jack made a frustrated sound under his breath and his hands clenched at his sides, “I'm gonna warn you _one time,_ Rhys, get back or I'll-”

“Beautiful.”

Jack blinked slowly, then he snorted, “Yeah, real funny, Rhys. I call myself 'Handsome Jack', we can stop with the irony now-”

“I'm not being ironic,” Rhys murmured, sliding his hand slowly around to hug tightly onto Jack, “I think you're beautiful.”

Jack's jaw clenched and he swallowed, "Yeah, when I wear my mask."

"You are without it."

“ . . . no, I'm not.”

Rhys kissed Jack's shoulder and nuzzled him, “I didn't ask your opinion.”

Jack was quiet for a moment, letting the water roll off of them then he slowly reached up and stroked his fingers over Rhys's arm, “Please don't.”

Rhys nodded slowly and back up, “Whatever you want, _beautiful_.”

Jack didn't say anything the rest of the time they were in the shower and he made Rhys stand in the stall until he got out and put his mask back in place.

“Get out here.” Jack's voice was brittle and cold.

Rhys sighed and stepped back out, Jack had very few boundaries and his maskless face was one of them, Rhys understood his insecurities so he was more than prepared to get yelled at and maybe have to sleep on Vaughn's couch tonight . . . again.

Jack was standing with his towel around his waist, his hair still dripping wet and he was staring at the wall, breathing heavily. Rhys grabbed a towel and slid it around his shoulders,

“Jack, I-”

“Shut up.” Jack snapped, his eyes twitching between two points as he worked something out in his head then he pinched the bridge of his nose and grit his teeth.

Rhys bit his lip and braced himself for what came next . . . well, except for what did come next. Jack took a shuddering breath and shook his head, reaching up and grinding the heels of his hands into his eyes, his shoulders hunching,

“Do _not_ call me 'beautiful'.” He snarled through grit teeth, “It's _not_ funny.”

“I-I wasn't trying to be funny.” Rhys murmured.

Jack's hands dropped and he glared at Rhys, “The fuck you weren't! Think I don't know what everyone says behind my back? Think I'm stupid, Rhys? Fuck you! Don't you _ever_ call me beautiful without my face on!”

Rhys slumped and nodded, “O-okay, Jack . . . “

Jack blinked several times and swallowed, turning back to the mirror, glaring at his blurry reflection and Rhys stood dripping onto the rug, not sure if he could move yet without Jack getting upset then the masked man held his hand out to Rhys. Rhys flinched back from it then cautiously extended his own hand and almost yelped when Jack's bigger hand clamped down on his. Jack tugged Rhys into him and buried his face into Rhys's shoulder, breathing in deeply. Rhys held his breath and counted to five before breathing out, waiting for Jack to do something.

“You . . . you wouldn't lie to me, would you, Rhys?”

“Never.” Rhys whispered, knowing full well that lying to Handsome Jack would get you killed.

Jack swallowed thickly, “ . . . you think I'm beautiful? Without . . . it?”

“Yes, I do.” Rhys murmured, reaching a shaking hand up to cup the back of Jack's head.

“Well, you're the only one.” Jack muttered, his lips brushing Rhys's damp skin, “ . . . thanks.”

“Don't mention it.” Rhys smiled a little.

Jack held him there for a moment, “You can call me that if you want sometimes . . . when we're alone. And only when I've got my face on.”

“Sure.” Rhys tried to catch Jack's eyes but the taller man only pressed his face further into Rhys's shoulder, “Um, Jack? Kinda wet, cold and naked here.”

Jack cleared his throat and nodded, “Right.”

Rhys glanced into the mirror that had cleared a moment before Jack hurried out of the bathroom but it was just long enough to see that Jack had been crying. Rhys moved to the door and leaned on it, watching Jack tug his clothes on and go back to what he was working on.

“I love you, Beautiful.” He murmured.

Jack glanced up and smiled, “Thanks, cupcake, I'm pretty fond of you too.”

Rhys shook his head and went to gather his clothes and get dressed, then he contented himself to curling up on the couch with his head in Jack's lap.

 


End file.
